CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Another vehicle has plunged over the interstate wall in Charleston and two more people have died, according to Charleston police.
The wreck happened at around 5 p.m. Thursday when the vehicle went off the interstate just past the I-64/I-77 eastbound split and landed below close to the Charleston Street Department Garage.
“There were three people in the vehicle entrapped,” Charleston Police Department Sgt. Travis Bailes said. “Charleston Fire Department was able to get everyone out, unfortunately one person died at the scene.”
Bailes said the other two crash victims were taken to a nearby hospital. Police later confirmed that one of those who were hospitalized also died. The third person is in stable condition.
No names have been released.
A crash on Aug, 21 claimed the lives of four Raleigh County men after their truck left the interstate in the same area as Thursday evening’s crash. A few days earlier a tractor trailer went off the interstate leaving two men in critical condition. There have also been a number of other close calls.
Bailes said the cause of Thursday’s crash is not yet known.
“The common factor in all of these is that it’s in the same stretch of road,” Bailes said. “Usually in the past speed has played a factor or drivers being distracted has played a factor. We’ll have to look into it and see what caused this crash.”
It also had been raining in Charleston at the time of the wreck.
“The West Virginia Division of Highways is concerned with the recent occurrence of crashes resulting in vehicles leaving the interstate, including the tragic event that occurred Friday, August 21, 2026. Even prior to the most recent incidents, WVDOH engineers have been working to develop a project to install high friction surface treatment on several of the elevated portions of the interstate. We anticipate having those treatments installed later this fall. We are closely coordinating with the Charleston Police Department to monitor crashes in this area and will determine additional countermeasures that may be implemented as they complete their crash investigations.
We would like to take this opportunity to remind everyone that a safe highway system is dependent on several components – safe roads, safe speeds, safe people, safe vehicles, and post-crash care. None is more important than the others. The WVDOH takes our responsibility to design and build safe roads very seriously. We ask that everyone traveling the state’s roads and highways do their part to contribute to a safe highway system by driving at the posted speed limits, buckling up, and not driving while impaired or distracted. It takes all of us to prevent tragedies on our roadways; you do your part and we will keep working hard to do ours.”